15AR20-26

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AR 20:26 - An unexpected evangelical - Islamist connection?

Apologia Report 20:26 (1,255)

July 30, 2015

In this issue:

ADOPTION - is it "the new front in the culture wars for tens of millions of evangelicals?"

BIBLE HISTORY - secular Jewish author notes "the jarring tone of certainty in English-language Bibles"

+ was the Apostle Paul "the originator of Christian anti-Judaism?"

ISLAM - are there early "hidden links between Protestant evangelicals and the growth of Islamist groups in Egypt?"

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ADOPTION

The Child Catchers: Rescue, Trafficking, and the New Gospel of Adoption, by Kathryn Joyce <kathrynjoyce.com> [1] -- claims that "the abusers of the adoption system are the 'tens of millions of evangelicals to whom adoption is the new front in the culture wars.'" Reviewer Sandra L. Glahn <aspire2.com> recognizes that this claim is over the top, yet she believes "Christians and adoption could benefit from a course correction. In fact, I think that Christians involved in adoption should read Joyce's book" - even though the "journalistic bias [in] her rhetoric makes it difficult for the very people she is criticizing to hear her message."

Glahn acknowledges that "Unfortunately, sometimes millionaire do-gooders arrive and, without consulting the local churches or organizations, erect orphanages with their names on them. And some nationals see filling such orphanages as a way to gain access to Western funds. ...

"Westerners' wealth often contributes to corruption. Money paid for inflated legal expenses, bribes, and any number of fees provides an incentive to find children in need. Poverty-stricken parents may be told their children have [the] opportunity to go away to receive an education, and only after the children are gone do these parents come to understand that the so-called exchange program benefiting the children has involved termination of their parental rights.

"A thorough researcher, Joyce has uncovered this corrupt underbelly in the adoption industry. [Yet,] it appears that Joyce has gathered all the negative data she can find and blamed the entire fire in Rome on the Christians. Never mind that many of the people in her stories who suffer at the hands of unethical adoption brokers are Christians themselves. ...

"A thorough journalist, Joyce interviews people on both sides of the story. But then she consistently sides with the person criticizing the adoptive parents. Part of her bias is that she is self-described as 'secular and pro-choice' - and she is these, so much so that she cannot seem to imagine that a reasonable person could hold an opposite point of view."

Glahn concludes with a substantial discussion of areas in which she is in agreement with Joyce in terms of related assumptions and assertions. Bibliotheca Sacra, 172:686 - 2015, pp252-6.

Christianity Today weighs in with its own review here: <www.goo.gl/oTloRI>

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BIBLE BACKGROUND

The Grammar of God: A Journey into the Words and Worlds of the Bible, by Aviya Kushner [2] -- "In her first book, Kushner, who teaches writing at Columbia College in Chicago, reports on her travels through the Bible in English translation. Thoroughly modern, though steeped in Jewish tradition (including the traditional way of reading the biblical text, which typically yields multiple possible meanings), Kushner comes from a family where the Bible and biblical grammar are discussed in Hebrew at the dinner table; she therefore finds the tone of certainty of English-language Bibles jarring. As she notes the many surprising differences between the two languages, Kushner muses on the necessity and dangers of translation. To address the drawbacks of translation, she refers in her account to the interplay of her project and the rhythm of her Judaism, and the surprising ways in which her reading of the English Bible intersect with her life. The result is an engaging combination of close textual analysis and autobiographical detail. Most likely to be illuminating to those unfamiliar with the Hebrew Bible, Kushner's exercise nevertheless sheds light on both Hebrew and English Bibles, so those already familiar with the Hebrew text will also be interested." Publishers Weekly, May '15 #2.

Who Made Early Christianity?: The Jewish Lives of the Apostle Paul, by John G. Gager, Jr. [3] -- reviewer John Jaeger, "Dallas Baptist Univ. Lib.," observes that "There is a particular understanding of the apostle Paul and the Early Church period that includes these elements: Paul turned away from Judaism, became a Christian, and both was the founder of Christianity and the originator of Christian anti-Judaism. ... Gager's (emeritus religion, Princeton Univ.) book offers what was originally a series of lectures based on texts from early Judaism and insights from recent research on Paul to show that the above understanding is largely inaccurate. Gager notes that Paul understood himself to be a Messianic Jew to the end of his life, and that Christianity, as a religious movement separate from Judaism, only developed well after he died. Also, Judaism stayed active and thriving in the early centuries, and it continued to have significant influence on Christianity. VERDICT This well-written and well-researched book will be an excellent resource for readers with an interest in Paul and ancient Judaism." Library Journal, May '15 #2, p86.

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ISLAM

The Orphan Scandal: Christian Missionaries and the Rise of the Muslim Brotherhood, by Beth Baron [4] -- with a historical focus on the early 1930s, the publisher's promotional material tells us that "this book uncovers hidden links between Protestant evangelicals and the growth of Islamist groups in Egypt. ...

"Exploring the historical aims of the Christian missions and the early efforts of the Muslim Brotherhood, Baron shows how the Muslim Brotherhood and like-minded Islamist associations developed alongside and in reaction to the influx of missionaries. Patterning their organization and social welfare projects on the early success of the Christian missions, the Brotherhood launched their own efforts to 'save' children and provide for the orphaned, abandoned, and poor. In battling for Egypt's children, Islamic activists created a network of social welfare institutions and a template for social action across the country - the effects of which, we now know, would only gain power and influence across the country in the decades to come." <www.goo.gl/nurGR4> The related Amazon customer reviews include significant criticism.

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SOURCES: Monographs

1 - The Child Catchers: Rescue, Trafficking, and the New Gospel of Adoption, by Kathryn Joyce (PublicAffairs, 2013, hardcover, 352 pages) <www.goo.gl/6FwJyp>

2 - The Grammar of God: A Journey into the Words and Worlds of the Bible, by Aviya Kushner (Spiegel & Grau, September 2015, hardcover, 272 pages) <www.goo.gl/OSSyHF>

3 - Who Made Early Christianity?: The Jewish Lives of the Apostle Paul, by John G. Gager, Jr. (Columbia Univ Prs, 2015, hardcover, 208 pages) <www.goo.gl/hyN7qT>

4 - The Orphan Scandal: Christian Missionaries and the Rise of the Muslim Brotherhood, by Beth Baron (Stanford Univ Prs, 2014, paperback, 272 pages) <www.goo.gl/BYX53y>

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